Our Little Town

Date posted - May 27, 2014

Weather permitting, I walk the streets of our little town almost everyday, as I have for years and years. It is very distressing to me to see the decline in the care of and pride in the many properties on almost every street. For those who do take pride in their homes and property, this is no doubt very upsetting to have a mess in the yard next door, as it takes away from everything around it. I have experienced this personally with neighbors who used their yard as a parking lot and a catchall for all their junk. Even if someone is renting a property it still is only common courtesy to keep the yard tidy. I really wish our city would get on the offenders to clean up and enforce it! Soon Ragbrai will be coming through with people from all over the country and even outside the U.S. Wouldn’t it be nice if they came away with a good impression of Sheldon rather than seeing dumps on every block? I don’t know if our city leaders care enough to DO something about this problem or not..but that’s just my two cents worth. thank you.

6 Responses to “Our Little Town”

Amen, sister. We have complained for years about one of our neighbors. The home looks abandonded, but it is not. We have been told that because someone is living there, it cannot be deemed a nuisance. I have a hunch, however, that if this home was in a councilman’s back yard, something would be done.

There is a thing that is called the court system. It is there to protect the property owner and support the city in the clean up effort. Too often the court leans towards the property owner. Another thing to consider is the cost of taking it to court. Every spring and fall, the city goes on a tour to update its list and to send out letters. If the nuisance is taken care of, then no follow up is need. If it is not, then a fine will be issued, and then they can contest it in court. Unfortunately the fines are paid, and the mess comes back again. The fines can be up to $750.00 as allowed by the court. If this is to work, the court needs to set stiffer penaltys.

this happens in all towns…Not just Sheldon..I agree it is very frustrating to spend time to make your yard look good only to have someone next door that doesnt care. I work hard to have a home and want it to look good. I know there are steps that have to be taken for the city to do something. But to do nothing there is no excuse..

Yes, I agree that a nice green yard with landscaping is beautiful. However, playing the devil’s advocate here (and having lived on the other side also): Something to think about:
1) If you believe a nice green yard nice, what about the other persons view – maybe they think a yard full of cars is more important to them then a nice green yard – would you want them to insist that you have old cars in your yard so they can appreciate that old car that will someday be restored? Think people aren’t like that? Watch American Pickers on TV – that whole show is about people who love their treasures (often junk in my opinion).
2)What if someone owns a home, but can’t always afford to keep it updated to match the community’s standards or they would prefer to spend money on something else – after all it is there money. An example of this is a vehicle – to me it is just simply a way for me to get from point a to point b so I am not into spending much money on mine, but to others, me driving a car that has rust on it is just embarrassing-but hey it’s paid for :)
3) The worst home/yard in Sheldon is most likely better that what 1/2 to 3/4 of the world’s population lives in. Many people would love to live in that “trashy” house next door.

I agree with you that I would love my neighbors to have the same priorities and views in their lives as I do. However, I also don’t want people telling me what I can or can’t do on my property. Yes, I think we can agree that we don’t want some site next door that is a health hazard to the community. But at the same time, I have been on the other side with the city complaining about my house needing painting while I am working 70 hours a week trying to pay medical bills. Personally while I enjoy having a nice green yard – I would also enjoy looking at some alpacas in my yard (but the city won’t let me).

i am not sayng you have to have beautiful landscaping and lush green grass. I am just saying at least mow the yard and keep the garbage picked up. I have had it before where I have to pick garbage off my yard from the neighbors.

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